DP Never Inevitable
by Deathcomes4u
Summary: When history repeats itself, there is no Clockwork to save everyone Danny holds dear. Clockwork has a mess to clean up and an agrieved, angry fifteen year old to face. And Vlad has no idea what he's in for.Angst, of course! .
1. Chapter 1

Danny stood in disbelief.

Gone… they were gone this time… no, no no no this couldn't be happening… it wasn't meant to happen, not when he'd finally done it, not when he'd defeated Dan, it was all supposed to be alright.

Danny looked around frantically. There was no one there yet. But where was he? Where was the purple hood and time staff? Where was the forgiving smile and wisened red eyes? Clockwork had saved them before… he must have… he must have got them out without being able to tell Danny. Danny went intangible where moments before he couldn't and ran into the flames and wreckage to make sure they were gone.

Moments later he wished he hadn't done this.

He stumbled out of the destruction and flames, tangible and burnt, the powers hadn't lasted long, and what was more he fell to his hands and knees and retched violently.

"Oh god… oh god no… NO…" he whimpered, coughing from the smoke and shaking his head. He was trying desperately to forget having seen those charred remains…

There were sirens in the distance. Danny panicked. He couldn't stay here, he couldn't handle this, it was too much, it couldn't be real, he had to escape this, he had to find someone. But the realization that everyone he knew and loved had just been destroyed hit him like one of his future self's punches to the gut. Danny suddenly realized tears had started streaming down his face. As though in a daze, he got to his aching feet… and he ran. He did not stop. He crossed the road, the heat of the fire dimming rapidly as he put distance between it and himself, sirens and flashing lights dimly registering in his peripheral vision. They drew his eyes back automatically, and he almost turned back to the burning wreckage… as though he needed to look at it one last time for closure… but Danny couldn't do it, because looking back would remind him what he saw in that fire, would remind him that this fate was irretrievable, and he couldn't handle it… he couldn't accept it even if somewhere very deep inside he knew he had to face the fact that it was real and inescapable, but his conscious mind kept clouding the fact with little insignificant thoughts like 'i'm burnt and it hurts', 'if I don't get away they'll ask me questions', 'if someone saw all this (and would be remarkable if no one had) then they know my identity and they'll arrest me and hold me captive', 'my shoe is falling off', 'i'm bleeding', 'i'm dizzy', 'I can't breathe, I have to stop but if I stop I'll start to think about it'…

In the end, Danny was so exhausted he tripped and fell. He fell hard, and though he threw out his arms to catch himself, he hit the side of his face on the sidewalk. His palms and right cheek now stung and bled. He dragged himself to his hands and knees and forced himself to stand, but he couldn't force himself to run because his knees shook too much from adrenalin, so he sunk to the floor of an nearby alley wall, scooting into the shadows as a fire truck came blazing past. Danny was panting and wheezing and tried to quieten himself so he wasn't discovered. But no one was there. Anyone who had heard the siren or been woken by it was either turning on their TV to try and find the problem on the news or trying to ignore it and get back to sleep.

Meanwhile, a half ghost sat bleeding and grasping his hair in his hands in an alley below them. A half-ghost who after finally finding a means of dispatching his evil future self had just lost everyone he held dear… and his school teacher… and was trying to block this thought from his mind.

Danny sat shaking and panting, grasping his large mess of hair in his fingers as his forehead rested on his palms and his elbows on his knees. Where was he going to go?

After running a considerable number of unsuitable places through his head, he decided on one that was probably no the safest, but it was the closest and most familiar. His own house was only two blocks away. Disregarding his knee's second protest at being used, he forced them on at a jog. He couldn't walk, his mind wouldn't allow him to accept moving at a pace slower than a jog, not after where he'd been, what he'd done and seen and lost… his fight or flight instinct was still in full swing and switched to flight mode.

As he jogged he took his mind off the pain in his lungs by considering what was going to happen. His house was going to be the first place anyone was going to look for him when they realized he was missing… although, they might assume him dead if no one HAD witnessed the explosion to say they'd seen him running away… but it was very unlikely no one had seen… if not at the actual site, then running down one of the dimly lit streets where at least two people had come out to see the cause of the loud bang. Perhaps they had noticed him? By any means, if and when they came looking, his house would be the first place they did. However, at his house were two means of escape. He could hole up in the op-centre, or go into the ghost zone where there were endless avenues to explore as hideouts…

When Danny reached his house however and phased through the locked door, he did not go to either of these places. He found himself dragging himself exhaustedly up the stairs and to his bedroom. He collapsed onto his bed and stared at the ceiling. He became acutely aware of the sting of the burns on his arms and the dry blood caked on his cuts where ecto-plasma had leaked before… he would regain strength enough to use his ghost powers again within the hour, but he didn't want to think about that… he didn't want to think of the inevitable memories and realizations of this disaster lurking at the edges of his mind either. He didn't want to think at all… he didn't want to know, he didn't want to feel this pain anymore, not the physical aches of his fight or the fire or the stabbing at his heart that had nothing to do with his battles. He wanted it all to go away as tears leaked from the corners of his eyes and he closed them, pushing down on his emotions and thoughts and forcing them away. He did not open his eyes again. Exhaustion won out in the end and he fell into a fitful sleep that only his body could benefit from but mind would regret.

"You made your bed clockwork, and now you will lie in it!" Said the first Observant, turning his impartial green eye on the purple robed ghost.

"You don't have the authority to…"

"You do not say what authority we have". The second observant cut him off shortly.

"You meddled in the time line the first time, and now the timeline has deemed that your actions deserve equal consequences. You may be a master of time, but you still do not control it" the first observer stated. Clockwork glared at them furiously but said nothing. He turned to the image of the halfa, lying beaten and sleeping restlessly in his bed. "Alright. I made a mistake. But only in that I did not secure Dan well enough. That has seen its consequences, the timeline has seen fit to punish the ghost boy and me. But this time, it is not the end of all things. This time he is aware of what turn his fate will take if he is not careful. And I will take personal responsibility. He will live the fate of Dan. If it comes to that, I will kill him. But I would prefer a chance to stop that ever happening. He trusts me, he will accept my help." Clockwork said in a voice of strained calm, trying to put his intentions to the observants as delicately as possible so as not to provoke an immediate disapproval. He hated having to have his intentions verified by stubborn, blinkered fools such as these Observants, but now he had no choice. And he didn't want more chaos to ensue due to his fault… and apart from this, he did feel a small niggling need to help the ghost boy… he'd grown on him… a headstrong fool he may be, but his intentions were always pure. It would be criminal to let that be destroyed and turned into a heartless monster.

The Observants looked at one another for a long moment, as though speaking silently by way of some sort of iris movement Morse code. Eventually they turned back to Clockwork.

"Very well. You may assist him, so long as you do not alter the timeline directly. Your destiny is influenced by his, you can influence his decisions as he is, but you cannot undo what has been done. Doing so will cost you your position."

"What do you mean, cost me my position? You might be able to foresee my dismissal at some point, but you cannot enforce it" Clockwork said roughly, the gall of the narrow-minded ghosts before him starting to get on his nerves.

" Exactly. We can see the consequences of everyone's actions on the timeline, including ghosts, including you. If you reset things as they were or save lives that should be lost, or even take him back to see them again, it will be your downfall. We are not enforcing this, we are warning you. We only know what we see, and we see all."

Clockwork's face was sullen and stony. "I see. Then I suppose I best get a move on. Time waits for no ghost… even if they are the master of it…"


	2. Chapter 2

Danny lay unconscious on his bed, moving only slightly with a pained moan or whimper while still in the inescapable clutches of dark exhaustion. There was no way he could even awake to the triggering of his ghost sense.

Before the fires of the Nasty Burger had even been put out, the shadow of a large and intimidating figure stood across the feint moonlight streaming through Danny's window. The red eyes that shone from the darkened figures face were, however, filled with pity.

Vlad Plasmius walked silently to Danny's bedside and looked down at him. It had not been a lie. One look at Danny's face was enough to tell him that, even if the scene at the Nasty Burger hadn't already. Vlad sighed mournfully. He knew the only way Danny could be asleep after all this was due to dire exhaustion. Even Vlad couldn't imagine what Danny had been through to come to this, and in truth, he was glad Danny was asleep. If he hadn't been, Vlad wasn't sure he'd have gone with him, but now he had no choice. Vlad had been told Danny would understand, would not resist… but knowing Danny, Vlad wasn't so sure. And yet… perhaps the Daniel Fenton he had come to know was now gone. Loss like this could change a person forever, this much he knew. For he himself was suffering, and he knew he couldn't return to the life he had made for himself after this. He would have to change, because now, someone relied on him. Daniel relied on him. And a little part of Vlad told him, as he scooped the broken boy into his arms, that he would rely on Danny too.

Danny woke with a yell. His eyes were wide open, and for a moment they seemed to shine with a bright green light, but the next moment they were sky blue once more. And bewildered. Danny immediately registered, pushing the shock of his dream to the back of his mind, that he was not in his room. And yet, the place was vaguely familiar. Then a similarly familiar voice to his left gave him a start.

"Daniel?"

Danny snapped his head around, his breathing still fast. His eyes rested on a concerned looking Vlad Masters. Vlad attempted a small sympathetic smile. "It's alright. I brought you here… you're safe." He said gently. Danny swallowed and blinked. It took a few moments for the memories to erase the post dream confusion. But when they did, he wished he was still in the dream… at least it hadn't been real.

"Did anyone find out?…" Danny croaked as he sat up slowly. Vlad gave him a puzzled look, and he added " my identity… does everyone know?"

Vlad's face relaxed a little. "Oh, no, not at all. You don't have to worry about that, no one saw much at all according to the news." Vlad explained. Danny looked somewhat relieved, but he frowned a little. "When did you find me? How did you find out what happened?" He asked. "I came to get you while they were still putting out the fires. Don't worry, I informed the authorities that I'm looking after you, they won't come looking. I was told by Clockwork…" he trailed off with a tone of slight confusion. A change came over Danny's face. "Clockwork? He was with you?" he seemed a little lost for words and… angry? "Not for long, he just told me I had to go and get you because… your family…" Vlad trailed off awkwardly, not wanting to mention the D word incase it upset Daniel. The implication was enough to twinge the pain in Danny's eyes, but he seemed to push it away, replacing it with confused anger once more. "Did he explain to you how? Did he tell you he could have stopped it?" Danny said in a strained voice of barely contained rage. Vlad's face strained a little more with confusion and anxiety at Danny's strange turn of emotion. He had expected grief, and possibly anger that he had not been able to save them, but this vicious attitude towards Clockwork?… Vlad had a feeling he had missed something here…

"He didn't tell me how this came to be, but he did tell me it was his fault and there was nothing he could do. He said he would return to speak to you when you had recovered a little more. That was all, then he left." He explained calmly.

Danny looked away from Vlad, the pain in his eyes deepening. He seemed to be struggling with something more than just the burning lump in his throat.

"What's this about Daniel?" Vlad prompted carefully.

"His fault? HIS fault… he's damn right it's his fault! Where was he? WHERE was he when that MONSTER escaped? Where was he when I was fighting to get that Basterd into the void? WHERE WAS HE WHEN I COULDN'T SAVE THEM? HE KNEW! HE KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN AND HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"

Danny's sudden explosion shocked Vlad. Tears had begun to stream down Danny's face again and he shook with both grief and rage. His breathing was shallow and shaky. After a shocked moment of tense silence, Vlad got over the initial surprise and leant forward. He wrapped his arms firmly around Danny, and after a moment of resistance, Danny gave up and collapsed into them, sobbing unrestrainedly into Vlad's chest. "Why?… why didn't he save them?" he gasped through choking sobs.

"I don't know, but I'm sure he will explain it when he comes…" Vlad replied calmly, running a hand gently through Danny's mess of black hair. He let Danny cry his heart out without another word, his presence enough to slowly calm and extinguish Danny's anger, leaving him a weakened mournful wreck, trying to come to terms in his mind with the fact that he would never see them again…

His Mother, his Father, Jazz… Tucker and Sam… even Lancer, he'd cost the innocent man his life… and denied his two best friends theirs, which they had not even truly had a chance to live…

And what was worse was the horrible twisting pain in his chest when he thought of Sam. He only just realized what it was… They had never said it. He'd known it now for long enough, yet he hadn't said anything. And now it was too late. She'd never know how he really felt.

Danny shuddered, a fresh wave of silent tears spilling down his face as he closed his eyes tighter. He couldn't take this pain. He forced the memories down, trying to think of something else. But unlike last night, his mind was not clinging to distractions. Quite the opposite, it was now ignoring all the little petty thoughts that tried to make themselves heard.

Danny didn't know it, but Vlad himself was still struggling to let the gravity of the situation sink in, as he sat with his arms still protectively wrapped around Danny's shaking shoulders. His mind was still in denial. They were dead. Maddie… the love of his life. Jack… his mortal enemy. Jazz, the sort of daughter he wished he had. And Danny's friends… both of whom had proved themselves worthy opponents along with Danny, his half-immortal enemy… who now resided in his arms as he tried to comfort the grief stricken boy. It all seemed so surreal to him. So much so that he felt numb to it and he couldn't yet work up any deep emotions of his own. It might have been that the reality hadn't sunk in yet… it could also have been his alienation and lack of true companionship for so long, that suppressed his emotional response to no more than a dull pang, like the loss of a prized possession. As though there was still hope he could find it again. But Vlad decided it was his ignorance of the situation and actual event that created this barrier to the deeper feelings within him. The need to know became unbearable.

"What… exactly, happened?… What was the monster you said killed them?" Vlad asked softly. Danny tensed in his arms again, the flame of anger sparking dully within him again. He made to wipe his eyes on his torn shirtsleeve. Vlad finally released his hold on him and sat back onto the end of the bed, facing Danny. There were shadows behind the pained and defeated blue eyes as they stared at the floor. Danny swallowed and steadied his breathing.

"Me… it was me…" he mumbled in a hollow tone. Vlad was slightly taken aback. "What do you mean it was you? You didn't… you weren't… were you being controlled somehow?"

Danny shook his head and sniffed. "It wasn't me now, it was the future me… and kind of you too…it's… a long story."

"Well…" said Vlad, trying to decipher his own involvement in the whole ordeal, "perhaps telling it will take your mind off things."


End file.
